How to Stop Wasting Time - The Olden Chapters

Have you ever gotten to the end of a long day and felt like you’ve gotten nothing done?

If so, then you’re in luck, my friend!

Today, we are going to discover how to stop wasting time.

These game-changing tips will help you boost productivity, decrease stress, and spend time on what matters most.

Ready to get started? Let’s dive right in!

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The top productivity tips and time management ideas that will change your life in college, work, business, or as a stay at home mom. Start staying organized and blast through your to do list by using a planner, becoming a morning person, and mastering your daily schedules, study habits, and writing. Even includes free printables to help you stay focused and utilize these life hacks. Pin this post now so you don’t forget these life changing secrets! #planneraddict #organization #college

How to Stop Wasting Time on Distractions

First, let’s take a look at some of the top tips to help you avoid distractions.

Put Your Phone Away: Try putting your phone in a different room (or using a phone lock box) to help keep distractions at bay.
Clean Out Your Phone Notifications: Remove any apps and notifications that are no longer serving you.
Set Limits on Entertainment: Find yourself spending too much time watching TV, playing video games, or scrolling on your phone? Try setting a time limit for these activities.
Try a Social Media Detox: Avoid social media by removing the apps from your phone or temporarily suspending your accounts.
Use Noise Canceling Headphones: If you find yourself easily distracted by nearby noises, try using a good pair of noise canceling headphones (these are my favorites).

Related: How to Reach Your Goals When You Have No Motivation

How to Stop Wasting Time at Work

Next, let’s take a look at some phenomenal time-saving tips you can use at work.

Take Regular Breaks: Set a timer or notification to help you remember to take regular breaks to avoid mental fatigue.
Set Deadlines: Try setting deadlines for both small and big tasks. This will help boost motivation and help you create a more realistic plan for your day.
Utilize Templates: For recurring tasks (such as sending emails, writing similar reports, etc.) try utilizing templates to cut your time in half.
Create a Separate Work Space: If you work from home, be sure to create a separate working space to help minimize distractions.
Opt for Remote Working: A bustling office can create a distracting atmosphere. If you have the opportunity, opt for remote work instead.
Learn Useful Keyboard Shortcuts: There are countless keyboard shortcuts. Challenge yourself to learn a few shortcuts every week to see which ones help you best.
Avoid Unproductive Meetings: Avoid the dreaded This meeting could have been an email situation.
Don’t Strive for Perfection: Let’s be honest. Perfection is impossible anyway. Why waste time on attempting it?

Related: How to Develop a Successful Job Search Routine

How to Stop Wasting Time at Home

Now let’s review some clever time-saving tips you can use at home and in your personal life.

Learn How to Multitask: Multitasking can be mentally taxing, stressful, and cumbersome. Many experts suggest avoiding multitasking altogether. I disagree. I think, when possible, you can multitask if (and only if) you pair an easy task with another easy, no-brain-energy-required task. My favorite way to do this is to listen to Audible while cleaning or working out.
Avoid Burnout by Incorporating Self Care: Burnout can be a HUGE time, energy, and productivity vampire. So, to help avoid burnout, be sure to incorporate self care into your daily life.
Clean out Email Subscriptions: Save time sorting your inbox by cleaning out your email subscriptions. “Unsubscribe” is your friend!
Meal Plan and Prep: Save time, money, calories, and effort by planning and prepping your meals for the week. Here is my ultimate guide on meal planning to help you get started.
Opt for Grocery Pickup: Instead of spending hours at the grocery store, order your groceries online and pick them up.
Get Rid of Clutter: Remove clutter from your home to save time on cleaning. Better yet, set up a realistic cleaning routine that works for your schedule.
Buy in Bulk: If you have the space, you can save both time and money by buying items in bulk.
Set Up Autopay: Save time (and sometimes money) by setting up your bills on autopay.
Stop Looking for Lost Items: Add an AirTag to your frequently lost items (keys, bag, etc.) so you never have to waste time searching again.

Related: An Ultimate Guide to Meal Planning and Prepping

Time Management Tips to Boost Efficiency

You can also stop wasting time by utilizing your time more wisely. This can easily be achieved by practicing good time management habits.

Plan Your Day: Create a realistic yet productive plan for each day. You can even set daily planning on autopilot by creating a simple planning routine.
Plan Your Week: Take planning one step further by creating a weekly plan to help you achieve your goals and use your time more wisely.
Use a Timer: Working on a difficult task? Utilize a timer to help keep you motivated.
Try the Pomodoro Technique: Speaking of timers, if you’re looking for a fun new productivity method, test out the pomodoro technique. Set a timer for 25 minutes and work on a single task. Then, take a 5 minute break. Repeat 4 times then enjoy a longer break!
Try Time Blocking: Divide your day into chunks of time, and assign a project or task to each chunk. Use a planner, timer, or your phone to help you stay on track.
Batch Similar Tasks: Complete similar tasks together in a single chunk of time. Some examples might include: responding to emails, laundry, cleaning, sorting mail, and paying bills.
Establish Routines: Efficiently use your morning and evening time to sneak in habits and tasks that will help you make progress towards your goals by establishing a perfect morning and evening routine. Here is my ultimate guide to morning routines to get you started.
Predict Task Time Estimates: It’s impossible to complete 100 hours of work in a single day. So, to help you create realistic and manageable to do lists, try assigning time estimates to each task on your list.
Track Your Time: Similar to creating time estimates, try using a time tracking app to learn more about how you spend your time. Don’t forget to review your results each week to see how you can improve.
Establish a Top 3 for the Day: Skim your to do list and pick 3 top items you wish to complete. This will help you stay focused and decrease wasted time.
Work on the Most Important Task First: Start your day off strong by completing your most important task first.
Prioritize Your Tasks: Use colors, symbols, or numbers on your to do list to help you prioritize your tasks.
Work During Your Best Time: Are you a morning person or night owl? Understand when you work best and plan your most difficult tasks at that time. If you are unsure, try tracking your energy for a few days.
Set Time Limits: Set time limits on work, TV, social media, and other areas of your life. You can even use a timer or app to help you stay on track.
Reward Yourself: Don’t forget to reward yourself with self care or a small gift to keep you motivated.
Follow the 5-Minute Rule: Ask yourself “will this task take less than 5 minutes?” If the answer is yes, then complete it now.
Break Down Large Tasks: Utilize the project planning process to break down large tasks into manageable, bite-sized pieces.

Related: Skyrocket Your Productivity with These 13 Game-Changing Time-Management Tips

Free Project Planner

This free project planner will walk you through the process of breaking down your largest tasks and projects into bite-sized pieces. Snag your copy today to get started.

Related: A Complete Guide to Project Planning

Learn how to conquer the project planning process in ten easy steps. This is one of the best productivity tips for college students looking to stay organized and better their time management. Includes a free project planning printable to stay organized and accomplish your biggest tasks. Read now to learn more time management and productivity tips!

How to Stop Wasting Time with Unimportant Tasks

Finally, you might find yourself working incredibly hard but still you don’t have enough time to do what matters most. If this sounds familiar, you might be spending too much time on unimportant tasks. Let’s learn how to avoid that!

Evaluate Your Priorities: Take a realistic look at your to do list and areas of your life and determine what matters most to you. Everything else can be removed from your plate.
Set Goals: Looking for a little direction in life? Try setting realistic and meaningful goals to help you build a life that you love. Here is my ultimate guide to goal setting to help you get started.
Delegate Tasks to Others: Do you have anything on your plate that someone else can do? If so, delegate!
Learn How to Say No: Always remember you can say “no” to tasks, projects, and other obligations that aren’t your priority at the moment.
Remove Unimportant Tasks from Your To Do List: Regularly scan your task list and remove any unimportant tasks.
Identify and Remove Time-Wasters: Evaluate any regular task you believe is wasting your time and commit to removing it from your life. Some time wasters might include social media, commuting, excessive TV time, or meetings.